[Dailydrool] Pet Insurance

[kacy green]

I have insurance on both of my hounds - age 5. They each have
different policies though, through different companies.

Rupert came to us as a rescue - stray, unknown history. Withing 3
months of adoption he had an intestinal blockage - a plug (that
appeared to be from those hollow metal poles used for camping
equipment), had literally plugged him up. We don't know where it came
from - my belief was that it was already in his system and worked its
way through as he got used to being fed regularly, etc. So anyway,
that cost nearly $2k with all the pre-surgical tests, surgery and
recovery meds and that's when we decided to insure both kids for the
future well-being of our checking acct.

Cowboy has VPI. Its about $21/month and I only chose it because at the
time I got a discount thru work and they automatically deducted the
payments from my paycheck. I've used it a couple of times over the
past 4 years and am always reimbursed some of my money. Not all, but
some is better than none. The coverage I have does not cover routine
care, just emergency type stuff or weird medical issues - not dentals,
extractions, shots, etc., but they did cover a bout of pancreatitis,
and ear issue, etc... They have a fee schedule and reimburse you
certain amounts based on the type of illness or issue. Let me know if
you'd like a copy of the fee schedule.

Rupert has PetCare Insurance. (www.petcareinsurance.com)  I pay in
full each year because you save a buck or two and it is $124/year
(about $10/mo) . But keep in mind, I only have him on the emergency
care only plan. I originally put him on the VPI and then learned that
he would not be covered on Foreign Object Removal Surgeries because of
his prior plug eating experience. Therefore they called it a
pre-exisiting condition. I argued til I was blue in the face, saying
"yes he ate something, had it removed, healed and is now fine. How the
hell is is pre-existing?!" They said, "he is prone to eat things".
Duh, he is a freaking basset hound! And of course, that was the main
thing I wanted to have covered since he was prone to it. So I
cancelled the plan immediately and put him on PetCare.

Another drooler had referred me and said that PetCare covered those
surgeries time and time again so I was sold. The way the plan works is
that you are responsible for the first $50 (deductible) and then they
will reimburse up to $2000 per incident. They will cover things like
poisoning, injured in a car accident, hit by a car, foreign object
surgery, broken leg (if accidental - not bone disease or abnormality),
attacked by another animal, etc. I may change it as he gets older and
is prone to actual health problems, but for now as a relatively young
dog, I am more concerned with accidental injuries than cancer and
disease. So far I haven't had to use it, but I have trust in the
company since the drooler that told me about it said they'd been
reimbursed several times without many questions or issues with the
company.

Hope this helps you.
Kacy with Cow and Ru